National progressive group sues Missouri over Voter ID law

Priorities USA, a national group that boasts “a power progressive movement” has sued the state of Missouri over its voter ID law, which it says is “unconstitutional” for voters who do not have the required photo ID.

“We believe that there shouldn’t be barriers to the right to vote for any American regardless of their political party, whether we’re in an election year or not,” said Priorities USA spokeswoman and strategist Symone Sanders. “We’re seeking an injunction to prevent the law from being implemented in further Missouri elections.”

Missouri voters passed the constitutional amendment, also known as House Bill 1631, back in 2016.

The organization has supported lawsuits in a few other states against other voter laws it believes violate the constitution. In this particular case, it’s not just supporting: it’s a plaintiff.

“We thought it was really important that we don’t let HB 1631 go by the wayside,” said Sanders. “That’s why we jumped in here in Missouri.”

The other plaintiff in the case is 70-year-old Mildred Gutierrez. According to the court filing, she has been a regular and registered voter for more than four decades in Jackson County. In 2016, her drivers license expired but she couldn’t renew “due to her failing vision at the time.”

When she tried to vote in last year’s special election with identification that was previously accepted, she was told that she had to “sign a sworn statement…confirming her identity, affirming she did not possess photo ID.”

The organization said that statement process, although legal under the law, “intimidates and deters eligible voters without access to photo ID.”

Gutierrez was apparently told she couldn’t vote in future elections without a photo ID.

The lawsuit alleges this requirement “unduly burdens and abridges” her right to vote.

The suit names the state of Missouri and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, who is responsible for implementing the law in his official capacity.

Ashcroft’s office said it won’t comment on pending litigation.

Attorney General Josh Hawley’s office will be responsible for defending the law. Mary Compton, a spokeswoman for Hawley’s office, said that they have received the complaint.

“We intend to fully and fairly defend Missouri law,” she said in an email.

Priorities USA Action is a political action committee connected with Priorities USA, and so far it has spent more than $430,000 on the Missouri Senate race. Most of the funds have gone toward attack ads against Republican Hawley, who will likely face Democratic incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill for the U.S. Senate seat this November.

Sanders said the lawsuit is not politically motivated.

“In filing our lawsuit, we didn’t make a ‘political calculation,'” she said. “It has nothing to do with any of the PAC work we’re working on.”

Former Secretary of State Jason Kander, who narrowly lost to Republican Roy Blunt in the 2016 Senate race, spoke against the law during his time in office. He took to Twitter Wednesday to say the law is “exclusively about suppressing voters.”

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